


Such a Beautiful Lie

by HolleringHawk65



Category: Gotham (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Kidnapping, Other
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-01-18
Updated: 2016-01-17
Packaged: 2018-05-14 16:14:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 747
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5749762
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HolleringHawk65/pseuds/HolleringHawk65
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Instead of going on a killing spree, Jerome kidnaps a baby Dick Grayson. He's convinced that he can give him a better life than his real parents, and with Cat & Ivy helping him, maybe he can.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Such a Beautiful Lie

**Author's Note:**

> Basic AU: Instead of killing his mother and going off the rocker, Jerome just kidnaps Dick. I fudged their ages a little bit -- Jerome is 17/18, Dick is around 7 months, Selina is 14, and Ivy is 12-ish.
> 
> I listened to 30 Seconds to Mars' A Beautiful Lie (the album) as I was writing this, but you don't need to listen to it or anything :)

The child shouldn’t be away from his mother, not yet. He’s not even a year old.

Jerome’s done some insane things, but this -- taking little Richard Grayson from his parents, away from the circus.

“It’s for the best, little bird,” he whispers as he shields the babe from the cold winter around them. He needs to get them to somewhere safe, somewhere where the baby won’t freeze to death.

He cooes underneath Jerome’s jacket. Somehow, he’s been able to keep the baby warm, but right then he was freezing. He could go to a homeless shelter, but then they’d take him away, either to the GCPD or to a foster house or adoptive parents.

It would defeat the whole purpose.

He was staggering around, trying to find a place to settle. He could break into a basement, wait out the rest of the night there. Maybe the house would have a baby and he could take some formula and diapers and-

He laughed, careful to keep supporting the babe. He took a child away from his semi competent -- no. No, they weren’t. John and Mary might be loving, but they couldn’t give their son what they needed. A child should have a stable growth, in one place, he shouldn’t have to hear one of his parents _fucking_ somebody else, nearly every night-

“My little Robin,” he whispered as he shifted his arms again. He kept passing alleys, but there were other people there, or there would be. He needed to go somewhere quiet, where no one would bother them.

He knew that, at any moment, the police would be informed that the baby was missing. They wouldn’t know who had taken him, of course, but seeing a teenager walking around in the first bad storm of the year, a bundle underneath his coat - 

It wouldn’t be that hard to figure out.

\---

Most of the time, Selina would already be in her hideaway of the week, but this was so pathetically entertaining. She dropped down in front of the red head, hands on her hips when she straightened out. “The two of you are going to die.”

“Well, unless you’re inviting me into your home, you’re just getting in my way of finding a place to stay.”

She crossed her arms. “You’re just being an annoying prick. Maybe I know about an empty apartment that’s _really_ cozy. And I have some mogul’s black card.”

The blob underneath his jacket moved around, causing him to break eye contact as he looked down at it. “Okay. Yeah. Lead the way.”

She waited for him to come closer before strolling down the street. “So what’s in there, anyway? A dog?”

“I’m more of a cat person,” he told her, hesitating for a moment. “It’s a baby.”

“You _stole_ a baby?” 

He looked down at her. “Maybe the baby’s my son or my brother.”

She looked him over, eyebrow raised. “Sure. I’ll buy that for now, so I can claim not to know that you kidnapped a baby.”

\---

The baby is tiny.

The boy hasn’t left the baby’s side since they got to the apartment. She went out and stole some basic supplies, not wanting to take too much in one go.

“Does he look blue to you?” Jerome asked for the upteenth time. She looked at the baby again and sighed as she answered. Again.

“No, it’s just the bad lighting. Look, we have the heat going. He’s going to be fine.”

They had rigged up a crib out of some of Barbara’s shoe boxes and old sheets. Ivy had woken up, given Jerome the stink eye, and then disappeared again. Selina had heated up some canned soup for the two of them, and then formula for the baby.

“What’s the boy’s name, anyway?” she asked him as she handed Jerome a bowl of soup and a bottle of formula.

“Robin,” he told her as he smiled at her for the food.

“Hm. Seems like you’re the odd one out. I’m Cat, Red is Ivy, and this lil guy is Robin. And then you’re ‘Jerome’.”

“Foxglove?” Ivy suggested as she came out of the bedroom. Jerome handed her his bowl of soup -- she looked like she needed it more than he did.

Selina nodded. “Fox… I like it.”

He took Robin into his arms to feed him, supporting the babe with one arm as he fed him with the other. They could call him whatever they wanted for all he cared.

**Author's Note:**

> Follow me on tumblr! It's the same username :) I take prompts too :)


End file.
